Living The Writer's Life: Bob Sands “Momentum is much easier to steer than it is to start.”
That quote from Bob Sands does a fine job summing up his go-after-it attitude. He’s one of those gems of writers whose career is flying forward at warp speed, though he remains cheerfully approachable and down-to-earth. If ever there was a new writer to learn from, he’s the one. Enjoy his story …

The Job Fair at AWAI’s FastTrack to Copywriting Success Bootcamp is the only event of its kind in our industry – a time when 40+ marketers come together to meet with AWAI-trained writers to make the connections needed to create millions of dollars worth of copywriting and content projects over the next year.

But as incredible and unique as this event is … for 2015, it’s going to get even better.

“In the past, we’ve set up Job Fair like a trade show, with each company having their own dedicated table or booth,” says Rebecca Matter. “And while it was awesome, it was also somewhat overwhelming and stressful for both marketers and our copywriters. There was simply too much opportunity and talent in one space that participants felt there wasn’t enough time to connect with everyone, so we’re addressing that by changing the format.”

Now, the AWAI Job Fair experience will start well before Bootcamp itself happens October 14th – 17th, and continue throughout the event in the days leading up to the official Job Fair session on October 16th.

Beginning in September, marketers will be recording brief video “commercials” highlighting their company. The videos will cover the needs of their market, customer profiles, the publishing and marketing process at their firm, and, most importantly, how you can help them be more successful with their marketing efforts. At Bootcamp itself, additional companies will present live from the main stage.

It’s designed to give marketers a better platform to explain their unique needs and marketing challenges – and give writers more time to process what each company is looking for and assess how that company fits with their career goals. With advance insights into what marketers seek, writers will have the chance to research “dream clients” and truly understand the best connection points and spec challenge angles before initiating a conversation or submitting spec challenge pieces.

Plus, with the advance lead time of sharing company profiles, AWAI will be allowing marketers looking for in-house talent to schedule interviews with writers at Bootcamp, something that wasn’t possible in the old format.

So with companies advertising their needs and taking questions in advance, what will happen during the formal Job Fair session at Bootcamp?

The stressful “trade expo” experience will be gone. But, says Katie Yeakle, “We didn’t want to lose the impact and excitement of Job Fair itself – being in the room with all the marketers and having that time to connect with them. So, we’re turning it into more of a cocktail party. Marketers will still be there and easily identifiable with marked tables, but they won’t be locked behind them. Instead, they’ll be at standing tables where they can chat with you and the whole tone of the event is going to be much more conversational and natural.”

She notes, “It’s designed to be more of a friendly ‘meet and greet’ time, so that even the most apprehensive person can be comfortable approaching marketers and joining in on conversations. And while it’s a bit of an experiment, I’m confident it’s going to prove much more effective for both our writers and the marketers who participate.”

What usually happens after Job Fair? The results have included career-launching contracts for hundreds of AWAI writers … and billions of dollars in sales for companies with AWAI-trained talent on staff. But with the new format in place, both writers and marketers can expect that these past success stories – impressive as they were – will be eclipsed by future campaigns thanks to more time to focus on building the best connections possible before, during, and after Bootcamp’s Job Fair.

To learn more about the 2015 Bootcamp Job Fair as a writer – or to register for the event, click here.

To learn more about AWAI’s Bootcamp and Job Fair from the marketer side, click here.

Or to coordinate advertising for your firm’s copywriting needs, reach out to the Job Fair Director, Charlotte Crockett, at jobfair@awaionline.com

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What a smart idea! This will give everyone a much more relaxed and natural way to start the conversation. Thanks, Charlotte and Katie, for making this change - no more leaning over the table, trying to hear what the other person is saying!

I think this is a great idea as a lot of writers are shy and their talent may be hidden. This will make it easier for them to get in front of potential clients.
Well done AWAI you just get better and better.

Of course, the whole copywriting world was new last year, but the job fair was like drinking from a fire hose. The pre-bootcamp vids and some time to process the information will be helpful. Not sure that the piecemeal introductions will allow for much time to prepare any writing, but we'll see. Great to see the freshness and continual efforts to morph and modify the Bootcamp.